Rumors surface on Twitter that North Korean leader has been assassinated
Twitter and Weibo, a similar microblogging site popular in China, has been buzzing with the rumor that Kim Jong Un has been assassinated in Beijing.
Kim Jong Un is being rumored as dead, having been assassinated at the North Korean embassy in Beijing. According to Forbes, the rumor is that two assassins broke into Kim Jong Un’s room and shot him dead, before being killed by bodyguards. A Twitter user was quoted on Forbes, “@ChristianJMay posted that the rumor is ‘based on news that a host of blacked out cars have descended upon embassy in Beijing, where he was visiting.’” However, the website points out that it isn’t even clear whether Kim Jong Un was in Beijing or not.
Kim Jong Un, believed to be in his late 20’s, has been North Korea’s leader since his fathers death in December, 2011. The Huffington Post wrote, “His ascension comes at a delicate time. King Jong Il died as diplomats were in the midst of negotiating with Washington on much-needed aid to alleviate a chronic food shortage. There were also discussions between North Korea and its neighbors on the prospect of restarting nuclear disarmament negotiations.”
It seems that Kim Jong Un has followed in his grandfather, Kim Il Sung’s, footsteps. Unlike Kim Jong Il, Kim Jong Un seems to want to bond with the people of North Korea. He recently went to visit students at the Mangyongdae Revolutionary School for the lunar New Year celebration. According to MSNBC, Kim was pictured shaking hands with students, examining, “the heating systems of the soldiers’ quarters, the pressure of their water faucets, the books stacked in their libraries—even the taste of their food.” Kim Jong Un seems to want to build a relationship with North Korea, in order, it seems, to erase the memory of the rule that his father had had over the country.
